• New project to use advanced technology to sustainably cultivate tomatoes and cucumbers year-round in the UAE

• High-tech greenhouse to leverage efficient cooling systems that limit carbon footprint and water usage

 

Abu Dhabi, UAE – 07 August 2023: ADQ, an Abu Dhabi-based investment and holding company, and Safe Haven Solutions, a Netherlands-based climate-smart agriculture solution provider, have commenced on a project to construct a high-tech greenhouse at ADQ’s cutting-edge AgTech Park in KEZAD. The automated 10-hectare facility will leverage advanced agriculture technology to increase sustainable food production in the UAE.

 

Designed with sustainability considerations, the greenhouse facility will operate with an efficient cooling system that reduces its carbon and water footprint, enabling the year-round cultivation of tomatoes and cucumbers in a carbon-neutral, climate-controlled environment. In phase two, the project will enter the commercial stage and double the growing area of crops to 20 hectares.

 

Consumers will benefit from high-quality local produce that remains fresh for longer due to a shorter supply chain. The project's scalability aims to minimize food waste by aligning production with local market demand. Safe Haven Solutions’ horticulture experts will collaborate with local researchers and agronomists to encourage the development of technology that is ideally adapted to the local climate and growing conditions, while training facilities will enable knowledge transfer to Emirati talent to nurture the next generation of specialized growers. 

 

Gil Adotevi, Chief Executive Officer, Food & Agriculture at ADQ, said: “Our partnership with Safe Haven Solutions expands on our mission to increase Abu Dhabi’s sustainable agricultural footprint. By driving investments in AgTech solutions, we are strengthening the UAE’s ability to grow more produce domestically. As such, AgTech Park is rapidly emerging as a hub of large-scale, climate-controlled, high-tech farming and R&D projects. We look forward to Safe Haven Solutions bringing their deep expertise in operating high-tech greenhouses to this project to cultivate homegrown fresh vegetables for communities across the nation.”

Abdullah Al Hameli, CEO Economic Cities & Free Zones, AD Ports Group commented: “We welcome Safe Haven Solutions to KEZAD in support of the continued development of the transformative AgTech Park. Our robust infrastructure and flexible spaces provide ideal facilities for our partners to tailor projects and facilitate the production, storage and distribution of food staples for the benefit of the nation’s expanding agriculture sector.”

 

Dr. Nadeem Mohammed Aslam, Co-Founder of Safe Haven Solutions, added: “Sustainable agriculture is of paramount importance as we strive to strengthen food security and limit our impact on the environment. We are confident that the AgTech Park, paired with our innovative technologies, will help strengthen the foundation of the UAE’s agriculture sector as it accelerates towards securing year-round access to nutritious food that feeds a growing nation.”

With the UAE’s historical high dependency on imports of produce and the country’s annual consumption of fruits and vegetables projected to increase by 18 percent between 2019 and 2026, strengthening the agricultural self-sufficiency in this field is high on the public agenda. 

 

ADQ’s collaboration with Safe Haven Solutions represents another project launched within the AgTech Park in KEZAD. Earlier this year, ADQ commenced the operational phase of the Park with the launch of a vertical farming project in partnership with ZERO, a high-impact technology company headquartered in Italy.